TikTok content creator Esmeralda Ferrer Garibay has died. She was 32.
On Aug. 22, four bodies wrapped in plastic bags were discovered inside a pickup truck near a mechanic shop in the San Andrés neighborhood of Guadalajara, Mexico. On Thursday, the Jalisco attorney general’s office confirmed they were the remains of Ferrer Garibay and her husband, 36, as well as their two children, ages 13 and 7, El Financiero reported.
The Mexican influencer began her path to internet stardom in 2020 by posting comedic lip-sync covers to TikTok. But the Michoacán native, who had just moved to Jalisco, was most known for displaying her lavish lifestyle online and often showcased designer clothing, brand new vehicles and cosmetic surgery.
This gruesome tragedy comes just months after the death of another Mexican influencer, Valeria Márquez, who was fatally shot while live-streaming on TikTok in Zapopan, Jalisco.
According to Univision, Ferrer Garibay would allude to having ties to the world of drug trafficking, once posting a phrase on her social media platform: “The advantages of having a drug-dealing boyfriend.”
While onlookers have speculated that Ferrer Garibay could have been targeted for her social media presence, Mexican prosecutor Alfonso Gutiérrez is looking into the activities of her husband, Roberto Carlos Gil Licea, a businessman who facilitated the purchase and sale of vehicles and tomato production in Michoacán, Telemundo reported.
Police did arrest three suspects, who were said to have worked in the mechanic shop near where the bodies were found. They were later released due to lack of evidence, according to Univision. Yet just as they were leaving the Jalisco prosecutor’s office, authorities confirmed they were approached by armed men — and two of them were killed.
Authorities are still investigating details of the case.
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